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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23233780">Back at Shakky's Rip-Off Bar</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Wren/pseuds/Black_Wren'>Black_Wren</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Dark Sea Chronicles [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>One Piece</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 12:54:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,301</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23233780</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Wren/pseuds/Black_Wren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Luffy and crew reunite with Rayleigh on their way back to New World.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Dark Sea Chronicles [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1603429</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Back at Shakky's Rip-Off Bar</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>June 20, 801 WG</p><p>It was another day at Shakky’s Rip-Off Bar.  Rayleigh had robbed another nobleman, who made the fatal mistake of purchasing him from the Human Shop, and was enjoying some drinks at the bar while Shakky shook down another drunk pirate for all his beris.  Good thing her business thrived on the fly-by pirate crews that crawled up the Grandline on their way to New World and not regulars.  Then again, the few regulars she did have she always treated well.  Exibit A: Rayleigh.</p><p>Outside, rival crews exchanged fire but avoided the more densely populated groves that were more likely to have nobles are even a random Celestial Dragon walking around and thus, avoided drawing Marine attention.  Not that they would get much right now shy of slugging a Celestial Dragon.  The Marines were still busy cleaning up after all the excitement in New World and Alabasta and wrestling the four Blues back into submission.</p><p>Shakky and Rayleigh had been the spending the past few months wondering what had gotten into Luffy’s allies.  The coordinated attacks on Marine facilities had come out of nowhere.  What made it even more odd, and alarming, was that Luffy, the usual epicenter of all things chaotic these days, was missing from the action.</p><p>Pirates everywhere in Saboady were talking about the weird activity, but since they were mainly rookies, they had, of course, come up with some outrageous theories as to why.  Many of which reflected their ignorance of the man who headed the fleet.  The suggestions included vengeance for Ace or Straw Hat displaying dominance through the might of his subordinates.  The new Yonko, having felled Kaido and done a critical blow to Big Mom, flexing muscle in victory.  The heir-apparent to the Pirate Throne, as recognized by Rayleigh’s support two years earlier, showing he was above the threat of Marines now.  </p><p>None of it was really Luffy, though.  The boyish captain that only wanted to sail to adventure and was not interested in conquest of any sorts.  A man with a dream.</p><p>Shakky and Rayleigh got a laugh at the rookies’ wild speculations but as time went by with no sign of Luffy, worry began to set in.  What if these attacks were for a completely different reason?  One that didn’t bode well for the good health of their favorite pirate.  They tried not to speak the taboo thought for fear it would manifest in the papers, confirming their worst fears.  As long as the papers remained silent there was still hope.</p><p>Shakky finished shaking down the drunk and hurled the luckless, and now penniless, soul out of her bar. She then returned to her place behind the counter to pour Rayleigh another drink and continue with their conversation.</p><p>The door burst open before a word could be spoken between the two.  She looked up wondering what fresh victim and walked in and her jaw dropped.  Rayleigh noticed her stunned expression and turned, only for his eyes to widen in both surprise and delight.</p><p>Speak of the devil!</p><p>Luffy stood in the doorway, breathing hard from what must have been a dead sprint from wherever he docked his ship.  It took him thirty seconds of gasping and the two former pirates staring before Rayleigh managed to find his voice.</p><p>“Luffy!  You’ve returned!”  He was so happy, a bright smile spreading across his face.  Shakky felt her own face splitting at the sight.  The weeks of worry vanishing at the sight of the petite captain in the straw hat.</p><p>Luffy looked up.  He wasn’t smiling, which startled the pair, he was also still panting.  Nevertheless, the young man managed to take a deep breath and launched himself across the room.  He grabbed hold of the stool next to the old man and perched himself atop it as he spun to face Rayleigh with a serious expression on his face.  He resumed panting.  </p><p>Something about the whole thing seemed odd to Shakky.  Then she realized Luffy hadn’t stretched across the gap but leapt across it.  And he still wasn’t smiling.  There was an edge to his face, shadows that hadn’t existed two years ago or even eight months ago when he had left Saboady to head to New World.  And… was that a new scar on his chest?!</p><p>It was.  It was small, no more than three inches, if that, of tight pink knotted flesh over his heart.  Not noticeable at a distance due to the massive two-year-old burn scar on his chest, but still, close up it stood out against the backdrop of the ragged discolored flesh of the old burns.  </p><p>Hmmm…</p><p>Rayleigh looked startled at the intensity of Luffy’s expression that held just an edge of haki.</p><p>“Is something the matter, Luffy?” asked Roger’s former vice-captain.</p><p>Luffy took another thirty seconds to get his breathing under control.  </p><p>Why was it taking him so long to recover his breath?  </p><p>Finally, he spoke.  “Why didn’t you warn us about that demon on Raftel?”</p><p>Shakky and Rayleigh both looked confused.</p><p>“Crocus said,” Luffy continued, “he didn’t mention it because he thought it wasn’t a big deal cuz you all shook it off and that he assumed we would do the same.  But Crocus didn’t even tell us about the Poneglyphs because we were right at the beginning so whatever.  But why didn’t you say something, Rayleigh?  That was not fun!”</p><p>“Oh so you reached Raftel!” said Shakky with smile.  She didn’t know what Luffy was referring to but if he was complaining about something on Raftel that meant he arrived.  “That means I should break out my best booze for when your crew catches up.”</p><p>Rayleigh, however, looked at him very seriously.  “What exactly happened?”</p><p>“Robin read the Poneglyph and got all possessed,” Luffy began, gesturing wildly to emphasis various points in the ramble.  “Then Law read it to the rest of us and we got all possessed.  And I’m not sure how, but I stopped being possessed but I figured out what would happen if they got more people possessed and tried to stop them from getting to their ships.  I had to blast my own crew with haki cuz they were all crazy and started attacking me.  Then this evil red spirit demon came out of them all angry.  I had to agree to protect all the nations on the Grandline or else it would repossess my friends and go and destroy everything.  So then of course Alabasta gets threatened and we had to run over there to save it from Pluton.  But if a Buster Call happens the whole world will go boom and lots of people will die.  And all because you didn’t tell us about that demon that comes out and possesses anyone who reads the Rio Poneglyph.”</p><p>Uh huh…</p><p>Luffy’s explanation left much to be desired but Shakky suspected it wouldn’t have been half as bad if she actually knew something about Raftel beyond the general legend.  Rayleigh’s darkening expression suggested as much.  He pinched his nose when Luffy finished then knocked back what was left in his mug.</p><p>“I didn’t bring it up because my memory of then is shaky at best.  You describing it now made me remember but…. I didn’t remember until now!  It was like I didn’t think about it until you brought it up.”</p><p>The door opened again, much more gently than before and in walked the rest of the Straw Hats along with Law and his crew.  Shakky eyed the Hearts Pirates wondering why they were there then remembered in Luffy’s rambling explanation that he had mentioned Law reading the Rio Poneglyph.  Why had Law been there?  She knew they had been allies to deal with Kaido, according to the papers, but hadn’t that alliance ended?</p><p>Nami ran over and pinched her captain’s ear.  “Luffy!  How could you run off like that!  You’re too irresponsible,” she scolded while Luffy yelped and pleaded for her to release him.</p><p>“It was bothering you that much that you couldn’t wait the two minutes longer to walk up with the rest of us before pouncing on the Dark Knight, huh?” asked a man in medium armor and a full beard as he sat down at one of the tables.</p><p>Rayleigh tilted his head at the new face. “Do I know you?”</p><p>The man grinned and waved a dismissive hand.  “We may have been sailing at the same time, but I never got the pleasure of matching wits with you.  So I doubt it.”</p><p>Rayleigh scowled and Shakky eyed the man as well.  Now they were really interested in figuring out his identity.  What pirate group had he been associated with back in the day?</p><p>“Anyway, seeing as the bar is still intact, or more accurately you aren’t in the middle of fielding punches, my godson has restricted his ire to mere verbal accusations than any attempt at physical violence.”</p><p>Shakky snorted as Rayleigh stared dumbstruck.  Godson?  Who was this?  She had to know!</p><p>“Are you going to announce that to everyone I know on this trip?” Luffy snarled, oddly irked.  </p><p>The man batted his eyes in mock innocence, placing a hand over his heart and said in a voice dripping with sincerity that by some miracle avoided any taints of falsehood, “Luffy, you do realize it is in the parenting contract signed at birth before doctors hand newborns over to delighted mothers and fathers that said mothers and fathers are expected to embarrass their beloved children at every inconvenient moment imaginable as a display of their over abundant love and affection as well as demonstration of their pride in their offspring’s many accomplishments.”</p><p>“Really?” Luffy, still fairly naïve, said this with honest curiosity, his annoyance lost.  The crews all clutched their sides as they tried hard not to laugh out loud.  Shakky and Rayleigh found themselves in a similar debacle.</p><p>“Yes, really!” declared a little girl with fawn hair in pigtails sitting on the Surgeon of Death’s lap.  Which made the deadly captain look less deadly and more domestic, which he didn’t seem to mind.  “Kaa-san and Tou-san said the same exact thing when Nii-san complained about Kaa-san kissing him in public.  And our parents wouldn’t lie!”</p><p>That sent everyone over the edge and the bar filled with their roaring laughter.  Comments of “So cute!” and “Law was a mama’s boy!” avoided retaliation only because it could not be determined who said them.  Law buried his face in his hands while the little girl patted him, appearing a little confused.</p><p>“See!  It’s a worldwide conspiracy!” cried the man with a face splitting grin.</p><p>“I didn’t know humans did that,” said a bunny mink.  Shakky recalled her wanted poster declaring her as Bunicula Carrot.  Odd she seemed too sweet to be a vampire bunny.</p><p>“Doctorine never told me about that.  Where do I find these contracts or is that strictly a World Government thing their hospitals do?” asked Chopper.  Poor naïve reindeer.</p><p>“But still you said it was the parents that had to do this.  You’re a godparent, or did you sign a similar contract when you became a godparent?” asked Carrot.  The crews were on the floor, save naïve, innocent members, in stitches.  Nobody had the air to explain properly.</p><p>Except the man that started it all, who was grinning like a fiend, and Luffy who was beginning to eye his godfather like he was just starting to suspect a con.</p><p>Looked like he’d grown a little wiser since their last encounter if he had become capable of suspecting a con.</p><p>“No, but as Lami here so aptly demonstrated, there is a form of parental embarrassment that is known as embarrassing by proxy.  Lami so sweetly brought up an adorable memory from their mutual childhood involving their late parents that thoroughly messed with her big brother’s ‘I am death!’ reputation he so carefully cultivated as a pirate.  Fortunately, we are among friends, so no harm no foul.”</p><p>Law’s giggling crewmen suggested otherwise, but the man ignored the signs and pressed on.</p><p>“I, as godparent, am simply filling the role, as ordained by being a godparent, of the missing parents.  I have waited nearly two decades to fulfill my duty and you, Luffy, do not embarrass easily.  I didn’t realize you would be bothered about this, though.  This is going to be a fun trip.”</p><p>Luffy was back to glaring at the man.  “I’m starting to think you really did dare Kaa-chan to steal Roger’s sword.”</p><p>What?  Shakky glanced at Rayleigh who was now cocking an eyebrow at the man.</p><p>Luffy’s godfather shrugged and said, “Well I didn’t dare her to kiss him.”</p><p>“WHAT?!”  The entire bar howled.</p><p>“Did I forget to mention that?”  He was once again batting wide brown eyes at his godson.</p><p>Oh my!  Shakky pressed her hand to her mouth.  Rayleigh was staring slack jawed.  She recalled Rayleigh telling a story of a diminutive Marine that had snuck aboard the Oro Jackson shortly before they found Raftel.  They had only noticed the missing sword hours after the Marine had vanished because they had been too stunned by the Marine’s abrupt and brief appearance.</p><p>According to Rayleigh, the Marine had dropped down from the yard arm by hanging upside down from a rope, grabbed Roger’s collar and pulled him into a full lip to lip, fifteen second kiss, then swung back up to the yard arm and vanished from sight.  Roger had stood frozen for a whole minute before his brain starting functioning again.  Until now, no one had had any idea what that had been about or even who that was.</p><p>“That was Luffy’s mother?!” the Dark Knight managed to squeak out.</p><p>Luffy’s godfather ignored Rayleigh’s comment and addressed the Straw Hat captain.  “She confessed when Kong asked her why she hadn’t stabbed the man since she had gotten close enough to snatch his sword from his belt.  Her response was a flippant, ‘Well, it’s rude to kill a man while you’re kissing him.’  </p><p>“Whatever Kong wanted to say to that was lost because your father started throwing a hissy fit over it.  It was the first time he had ever shown any jealous tendencies toward her antics and she took full advantage of it.  She shut him up by kissing him, while wearing the reddest lipstick I had ever seen.  It took Dragon five hours to scrub it off his face… and neck… and shoulders…  Quite frankly, I’m amazed with how thoroughly she covered him in that brief minute of romantic assault she launched in that office.”</p><p>Rayleigh was face to counter, probably trying to contain his mirth, while Luffy was absolutely mortified.  Few could stand the thought of their parents being sexual beings, apparently Luffy was not an exception.  Embarrassing by proxy, mission accomplished.</p><p>Then again…  Now that Shakky stopped to think about it.  Why was Luffy embarrassed?  He seemed rather immune to all things of romantic or sexual nature before.  How else had he survived Hancock?  Something significant had definitely happened in the last eight months.</p><p>“So you lot were Marines?” asked Shakky, once she was composed again.</p><p>“Yep,” replied the man, still grinning.  </p><p>Huh…  Where was he assigned that he missed out on crossing swords with Rayleigh, but a comrade could accost his captain?  However, his mischievous grin caused her to ask a different question rather than follow up.</p><p>“How much of this is trying to embarrass Luffy and how much is you having a fresh audience to tell tales about Dragon the not-so-godly?” asked Shakky.  Really that little tidbit about throwing hissy fits and smeared lipstick alone completely shattered Dragon’s mystic image that was cultivated in the newspapers.</p><p>“I have his biography covering the time he was in the Marines already written and safely tucked away in his mother’s study,” he said, laughing.  “We, his mother and I, plan to release it once everything has settled down.  Or at least that was the plan way back then.  Probably still is since it hasn’t been published yet.”</p><p>Oh this man was evil!  She was certain the Leader of the Revolutionary Army would not appreciate it in the slightest having his bumbling younger years publicized to be mocked by the world at large.  There was probably not a cave deep enough to hide in once the book went public to save Luffy’s godfather from Dragon’s wrath.  He didn’t seem to be fazed by that reality, though.  He must have been one of those thrill seekers that got their kicks kicking beehives just to watch how they swarm before racing for the river.</p><p>Then there was the mother.  Dragon’s mother.  All people had a mother but for her to still be alive and capable of tormentor her criminal son…  And hear she had thought Garp was a widower this whole time.  Well learn something new everyday!</p><p>“They were Marines,” said Rayleigh in a thoughtful tone, stroking his beard.  “That might explain a few things.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” asked Luffy.</p><p>“I don’t remember being possessed. I do remember waking up on the beach, not sure of how I got there when the last thing I recalled was being further inland near the Rio Poneglyphs.  As everyone was pulling themselves off the ground, I thought I sensed someone watching and looked over.  A Marine was standing further down the beach, staring at us.  He had another, smaller, person in his arms but I couldn’t see details at the distance.  He just stared at us for a half minute more before flying away.”</p><p>Luffy’s godfather became serious and asked the Dark Knight, “Did you people find Raftel between September 15, 775 and October 13, 775?”</p><p>“After all these years I can’t be sure, but it sounds about right,” replied Rayleigh.  He narrowed his eyes. “Why?”</p><p>“We, as in myself, Dragon, Maryanne and Helgram, had just defeated Hernan Cortes.  Maryanne was laughing after our victory as we tried to find spaces to lock the surviving pirates below deck when she suddenly stopped laughing, grew pale then took off like the devil was on her heels.  Dragon tore after her and Helgram and I were forced to return to base with our load without them.  A few weeks later we got word that Dragon and Maryanne had turned up at our eastern most base and that Maryanne was in poor condition.</p><p>“High Command asked about what had taken out their lively but highly effective vice-admiral and Dragon claimed he didn’t know.  That, by the time he caught up to her, she was falling out of the sky.  He didn’t see what, if anything, she had been fighting.  I’m thinking Dragon lied.  Given what you just said.”</p><p>“It didn’t cross your mind before?”</p><p>“He never lied before.  Withhold information, yes, but not flat out lie.  He’s terrible at it.  Unlike Maryanne who was a master practitioner of the fine art of deception by distraction.  She was also a phenomenal storyteller.  She could lie straight faced while looking you in the eye and coming across as hopelessly naïve, so you didn’t think she was capable of it.”</p><p>Shakky smothered a laugh while eyeing the Straw Hat captain.  Luffy looked stunned by this as did the rest of his crew.</p><p>Law snorted.  “After everything you told us about that pair, I’m surprised I actually find this surprising.  That kind of makes it seem she was being deliberate in her behavior rather than just clueless.  Unlike a certain captain we all know.”</p><p>Luffy scowled and said, “Being deliberate means she had control the whole time.”</p><p>“Well are you saying she deliberately destroyed seven battleships with a dinner platter?” asked Nami.</p><p>Shakky snorted.  Luffy’s mother sounded like fun.  Too bad she never got to know her.  Maybe it was better, given that she had been a Marine and had taken out the Conquistador Pirates.</p><p>Luffy’s godfather gave a half-smile and said, “Being a constant element of chaos is an excellent cover at those critical moments.  I think she deliberately put herself in those situations but never planned out the more explosive results.  They just happened and she just rolled with it.”</p><p>“Well I guess we found out what Luffy inherited from his father,” said Zoro.  “His inability to lie.”</p><p>“Well that doesn’t explain where all the trouble-finding came from,” said Sanji.</p><p>To Shakky’s surprise, Luffy grimaced and Nami kicked Sanji, who immediately apologized.  The one-time pirate, now bar owner, wondered what that exchange was about.  From what she understood about the Straw Hat captain, Sanji’s statement was on the mark.  Strange, why did it seem Luffy was more sensitive to comments about his past behavior?</p><p>The man shrugged.  “Garp is not exactly a rational fellow, maybe those tendencies just skip a generation.”  He looked then at Rayleigh, “Getting back on subject…  Crocus is one thing, you gave Luffy two years of your life to help improve his chances in New World and didn’t say anything about the entity on Raftel.  You remembered something weird happening and then saw a pair of Marines on Raftel when you came to.  Even if it didn’t deter Luffy, the rest of the crew could have used that information.”</p><p>Rayleigh grimaced and shook his head.  “As I told Luffy earlier, I honestly didn’t think of it until just now when Luffy asked.”</p><p>The man let out a breath then smiled at Rayleigh.  “He’s not lying.  You know that, right Luffy?”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah,” muttered Luffy flopping onto the bar, all energy and motivation vanishing.</p><p>“Still leaves us in a sucky position,” said Law.</p><p>Shakky looked between the tense and serious crews, something that was odd for the Straw Hats in general.  “How bad is this situation?”</p><p>“From what we can piece together, Luffy’s mother was able to beat that thing down so Roger and his crew got off scot free,” said Usopp.  “However, Luffy had to negotiate with the bloody thing to get it to back off.  So if one more nation gets destroyed by the World Government it will escape and destroy the world.”</p><p>“It’s super not funny!  That thing is a mass of hate for the World Government,” continued Franky.</p><p>Rayleigh’s eyes flashed and said, “There was something mentioned on the Rio Poneglyph that talked about a deal or a devil the twenties kings were involved with that granted them victory despite the ancient weapons being on the side of the Ancient Kingdom.  I wonder if it this entity is it.”</p><p>“Seemed more like the backlash.  Something that was created as a result of the deal,” said Law.  “The reason why the World Government tries so hard to keep the past buried.”</p><p>Robin nodded.  “Truth alone is terrible but learning about the truth causes the recipient to be possessed by this malicious spirit and sends you out to go and kill anything associated with the World Government.”</p><p>“If it gets spread to the world every man, woman and child that is not a Marine or Agent or Official or Aristocrat would become possessed by a murderous rage and attack those that are,” added Sanji.</p><p>“However, the World Government and the Aristocracy have all the military power,” chimed in a young woman from Law’s crew.  “Even though the citizens would outnumber the World Government, fatalities and destruction would be heavy on the citizens’ side of the battle from simply being outgunned.”</p><p>“They’d get overwhelmed eventually due to sheer numbers, though,” finished a Hearts Pirate with an orca hat.</p><p>“What would be left would be anarchy and blighted fields and rivers,” said Luffy’s godfather.  “The situation for survivors would be far worse than they are now.”</p><p>“Would no rules really be that bad?  No Marines, no laws, able to do whatever we wanted.  Sounds like paradise,” asked another Hearts Pirate, this one wearing a green rugby helmet and not looking the like the sharpest tool in the shed.</p><p>“Very bad,” Law answered with a snap.  “We pirates dance around the rules but also rely on them to know how to step so we don’t fall on our faces.”</p><p>“It’s like if everyone’s a thief there would be no money to steal,” said Nami, when she noticed continued confusion on several faces.  “What keeps the number of dishonest people in check so that honest people can continue to make things that can then be stolen is the protections put in place for the honest people.  Simply put, no one can steal food if there are no farmers to steal from.  Farmers can’t survive to grow food if they can’t keep any.  No protection for the farmers means no farmers and thus no food.  The thieves all starve.”</p><p>Shakky observed the two.  Law’s explanation was more poetic and seemed to hint at personal trauma.  He had probably experienced anarchy prior to becoming a pirate, or something very close to it.  Nami was practical and was able to explain it in simple terms.  Luffy looked at the two as if he hadn’t realized that but was taking what they said seriously.  Rugby hat still looked confused along with one other of the Hearts Pirates, one that looked about as clueless as Rugby hat.</p><p>“The Marines serve a vital purpose, even if that purpose is currently corrupted,” agreed Luffy’s godfather, his eyes focused on Luffy as if he were talking to him alone even as he addressed the room.  “We lose the law, society is lost and the people’s suffering increases.  It’s like what happened to all those islands that White Beard protected when he died.  He was the law since the Marines couldn’t be bothered.  Same with all the Yonko, actually.  No matter how terrible, any order, even an evil order, is better than no order.  That doesn’t mean an evil order shouldn’t ever be challenged.  It just means you need to have a plan for what comes after or you’ll wind up making things worse.</p><p>“That’s what Dragon wanted to do when he climbed the ranks, change the Marines to be better and more focused on their mission rather than politics.  It’s what he is still trying to do, now that’s he left, trying to establish fairer governments once he’s taken down bad monarchs.  He’s seen what happens when a nation destroys its own government and yet can’t create a new one.  What happened in Estaro remains at the forefront of his mind.  Not half as much evil was done within that evil monarch’s three-decade reign as was committed in the single year that followed his fall.  That’s why Dragon always sets up a new system and keeps his people around to make sure it’s working fine for a year before he moves on.  He’ll even check on them in the years that follow to make sure everything is still going well.  He takes responsibility and minimizes the chaos and won’t allow for anarchy.”</p><p>The others were silent for a while.  Shakky was impressed with the man’s analysis.  He definitely sounded like a former Marine.</p><p>“For someone who retreated to a backwater island in New World to settle down after leaving the Marines and cutting ties to Dragon, you sure know a lot about what he’s doing,” said Sanji, scowling.</p><p>“I keep my ear to the wind.  I never did lose my privileged connections after all.  They wanted me to stay clued into his activity in case I changed my mind.”</p><p>Shakky wondered what that meant but Sanji didn’t press and everyone else seemed to know what he was talking about.</p><p>“You understand all that but never joined Dragon in his mission,” said Jinbei.  “Why?  You’re a strategist of such talent that World Government was willing to overlook your behavior in regards to Pluton.  I can imagine it would have made it easier for Dragon to accomplish his mission if you had been at his side.”</p><p>Shakky and Rayleigh both stared at him in shock.  There was only person they knew of by reputation that matched Jinbei’s description.  Now his earlier comment made a lot of sense.</p><p>“You’re Raiju, aren’t you?” Rayleigh asked.</p><p>Raiju smiled at him but responded to Jinbei.  “When we left the Marines, Dragon approached me.  Told me everything and wanted be to join him for that very reason.”  He looked down, smile vanishing as his expression darkened.  “However, his motivation back then was not justice nor freedom but vengeance.  I was mourning Maryanne’s death as well, but seeing him, filled with rage and the desire to destroy…”  He shook his head.</p><p>“Now that I think about it.  The shadows of the beast was in his eyes.  He scared me then.  I tried to talk him out of it.  Tried to remind him of everything that he had stood for.  Tried to remind him of his purpose.  Tried to remind him of his dream.  I then brought up his son.  Big mistake.  He went off and he nearly killed me.  I don’t know what made him stop.  It was like he suddenly realized what he was doing and backed off.  I decided then and there that I wasn’t going to help but neither was I going to hinder him.”</p><p>“Why did he try to kill you for mentioning me?” Luffy asked in a subdued tone, his eyes hidden beneath his hat.</p><p>“His exact words when he came at me were, ‘Do you think I can let Maryanne’s only child grow up in this hell world?  They will surely hunt him to the ends of the earth for merely existing.  I must end them before they can ever be a threat to him.  He must grow up free!’  </p><p>“Dragon may not have accomplished his goal before you grew up but doing things slow and trying to get it right may grant your children the peace he was hoping to give you.  He’s fighting for the future.”  At this Raiju smiled a sad smile.  “And there is always a future to fight for as long as there are children growing up.”</p><p>Law snorted but smiled and gave the hair of the little girl sitting on his lap an affectionate tousle.  Shakky was curious about the two girls inside her bar.  She had just noticed a second even smaller one standing slightly behind Nami.</p><p>“As least he got his head back on straight after you two parted,” said the Hearts Pirate captain.</p><p>Luffy remained silent, staring at the floor, his eyes unfocused as if he were lost in thought.  Then the little girl approached as if she had seen some hidden signal and he reached down to lift her up.  Rayleigh and Shakky stared at the girl who stared back while she clung to Luffy.</p><p>“Who’s this?” asked Shakky.</p><p>“This is Ann,” replied Luffy with a smile, a warm bright smile, the first since arriving.  “She’s Ace’s daughter.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>Shakky chuckled as Rayleigh stared in disbelief, unidentified emotions flickering in his eyes.  </p><p>“Well now that we got the serious business out of the way,” she said with a smile.  She brought her finest bottle of booze.  “It’s time for us to celebrate the completion of your journey to Raftel.”  She popped the cork out of the bottle and began pouring glasses.</p><p>“Of course,” Shakky continued.  “You also have to tell us everything since you left, especially how you found this little jewel in your arms.”  She smiled at the little girl who buried her face into Luffy’s chest.  “And more importantly, what is going on with your fleet?”</p><p>“Uh…  Yeah…” started Luffy looking down, awkward embarrassment.</p><p>Law looked down as well, except he appeared guilty.</p><p>Shakky eyed him.  Definitely a story that was going to need much booze to hear.  She then glanced at the two small girls.  “Guess I better find some juice for the little ones.  Can’t give them alcohol.”  She reached down and found the juice and another bottle of booze for the crews.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Not much going on, just the reunion between Luffy and Reyleigh as the crews head back to New World.  The converstaion, however, will play a significant role in the future.</p><p>It's going to be a while before I update Dark Sea Chronicles due to Shard of the Moon being next but having to work on Mark of the Wind.  Mark of the Wind is the story of Luffy's parents, particularly Dragon.  Lance had told the crews that story when they were traveling within Laboon, which is what he keeps alluding to when they talk about Luffy's parents.  So hang tight!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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